It’s been a good week, filled with pointless walks, catching up on pizza consumption, watching sunsets from my balcony, taking pictures of grafitti, losing countless games of chess, going to the supermarket more than once a day, listening to new music, etc. Friday night was (almost) endless spritz, Saturday morning: craving a burger, fries, mayo, the whole bundle really. My burger spot of choice doesn’t open until lunchtime, so I’ve decided to make do with my own kitchen. Bonus points: since kneading dough has this soothing element to it, much welcome when dealing with a hangover, fries were no longer needed.

The buns are exactly what I want for burger buns to be: cute, with freckles of poppy seeds and nice yellow color, soft and holding the burger together instead of breaking into pieces under the pressure of fingers, finally, quick - really quick - to make, asking for less than one hour from start to finish, with only ten minutes of actual work. They can be used with all kinds of patties (here is another recipe I posted some time ago).

Mash the beans into a medium bowl. Add the puree, seeds, flakes and salt. Mix well. Add the contents of the pan and mix carefully, not to break the bits of pumpkin.

Sprinkle a cutting board with breadcrumbs. Take 2 heaped tablespoons of the mixture into your palms and form a patty, then place it on the breadcrumbs, press lighly, flip - this will create crust on the burger.

Fry in batches of three, using 2 tablespoons of oil for each batch. You should need 5 minutes on each side.

How to:

Preheat the oven to 220*C.

Mix the flour and salt in a medium bowl.

In a small saucepan, heat up the milk until warm (but not hot!) to touch. Add the pumpkin puree, mix until „dissolved”, then add the oil, sugar, and yeast. Stir to combine, then add to the flour. With a spoon, mix until combined. Dust your counter with some extra flour. Knead for about 5 minutes, until the dough is elastic and no longer sticky - you might need an additional 2-3 tbsp flour. Place in a clean bowl, cover with foil, let stand for 15 minutes.

Line a baking tray with baking paper. Divie the risen dough into 6 even pieces, roll those into balls then place on the tray with 5 cm space between them, then flatten with your palm and correct the shape to make nice, round buns. Cover again, let rise for 10 minutes.

Combine the ingredients for brushing and mix until sugar dissolves. Brush the buns, sprinkle with poppy seeds.

Place the tray in the oven. Bake for 15 minutes from below, then finish with 5 from above - or just 18-20 minutes in an oven with heating from both above and below.

Let cool on a rack before slicing.

to assemble:

mustard

chicory

pickled beetroot

herbs (parsley, scallions)

Slice each bun and toast lighly on the pan you used for frying the patties. Spread some mustard on both parts, place a burger on the bottom half, then a layer of chicory leaves, beetroot slices, some herbs, cover with the other half, press lightly.